Sunday, Nov. 09, 2008

Tigers can't hang with New Trier at state soccer tourney

Trevians score twice in first half and hold on for Class 4A title

NAPERVILLE -- New Trier proved as good as advertised Saturday in the championship game of the Class 3A state soccer tournament.

The Trevians scored less than four minutes into the game, added another goal late in the first half and held on for a 2-1 victory over Edwardsville on the artificial surface at North Central College.

It was the second state title in three years for the Trevians (22-1-1), who captured the Class AA crown in 2006. The Tigers (20-5) were denied their second state championship in this decade. They won a Class AA title in 2000.

"We worked our butts off," senior midfielder Kevin Minor of Edwardsville said. "We kept fighting, kept working. We can be happy with our performance.

"You tell yourself at the beginning of the season, 'We can get to state. We can get to state.' But a little bit of you doesn't really believe it. So for us to actually get here and reach our goal and say we got done what we wanted to get done up until the state championship, we definitely can be proud of it. We had a great season."

Edwardsville's soccer and boys cross country teams will be honored at a pep assembly at 1:30 p.m. today at the high school. The teams will receive a police escort from Hamel Elementary School.

Junior forward Ben Beaver scored New Trier's first goal at 3 minutes, 36 seconds. Beaver was in front of the goal when a cross from the right side was headed backward by Tigers sophomore Sam Fink. Beaver followed up with his header that settled inside the left post.

That got the game off to a sour start for the Tigers, who already figured to be challenged on defense by the high-powered Trevians.

"That was unfortunate," said Edwardsville coach Mark Heiderscheid, whose team was outshot 16-6. "They're a brilliant team anyhow. But boy, talk about being opportunistic on that one. We happened to knock it back a little bit, and then they're on it. That was a tough one to deal with."

Edwardsville struggled to find itself on offense, but picked up the pace after Beaver's goal as the game turned into a midfield battle.

The Trevians, however, couldn't be contained for long. They moved ahead 2-0 on a header by senior midfielder Chris Ritter at 29:12. The goal was set up by an Edwardsville foul that gave a free kick to sophomore Nick Rekenthaler.

Rekenthaler's kick from 30 yards out sailed into the middle of the box, where Ritter connected over leaping freshman keeper Daniel Brennan of the Tigers.

The Tigers maintained their effort and finally broke through at 76:23, when junior Nick Marshall converted from a few yards inside the box to whittle New Trier's lead to 2-1. It was Marshall's second goal in two games.

But despite continued pressure, the Tigers couldn't get the equalizer.

"There's such a dramatic difference between first and second," Heiderscheid said. "But when you look at the season in the whole scheme of things, you have to be pretty proud of the fact that you end up in second place in the state of Illinois.

"While it's kind of disheartening to think you're not the state champion, still, this is a wonderful accomplishment. Bittersweet, but you give it a few days and that can kind of sink in. Many, many other teams would have cherished the opportunity to play in this game and cherish to have that second-place trophy."

Edwardsville had a chance to get on the scoreboard early in the second half, but Marshall's shot from inside the box was high.

Brennan made an outstanding save on a rocket by senior Matt Strauss in the 53rd minute, diving to his right to knock the ball out of harm's way. Brennan, recently installed as the starter, had seven saves.

A defense with teeth

Edwardsville might not have reached the state tournament were it not for some late-season personnel decisions made by Heiderscheid.

Heiderscheid, concerned about the number of goals being surrendered by the Tigers --many of them coming on quick counterattacks --shifted all-state senior midfielder Kenny Giacobbe to defense.

Giacobbe, the Tigers' leading scorer, was strong and quick enough to hang with speedy front-runners from opposing teams. He joined seniors Jake Bateman, Marshall and junior Adam Moeller, and the defensive play improved.

Heiderscheid said Giacobbe's and Bateman's presence in front of Brennan had a calming effect on Edwardsville's other players.

"Both have been fixtures since their freshman year," Heiderscheid said. "With the amount of background that they have at the club level, that's just really vital. Defense is really the framework that you base a lot of your team on if you want to be successful. If that breaks down, you're not going to do well as a team.

"Those two are both so poised. They can clean things up so well. Even if our team is going to struggle, having those two back there, you feel more calm. You're looking at two very credible players who can play against some of the best teams in the country."

Contact reporter David Wilhelm at dwilhelm@bnd.com.